Our History

It was a bitterly cold Friday night, January 25, 1963. Typically winter, but an uncommon start to the weekend. Tonight, Leo and Gerry Mason were hosts to 13 people in their house. A group destined for creation. For it was about to create a new Methodist church in north Columbus.

For months, Rev. Don Grant and other Methodist officials had toiled to reach this point. On August 21, 1962, the Methodist Church bought 5.5 acres of farmland adjacent to Karl Road. Now, the first steps of life were under way for Epworth Methodist Church.

Rev. Grant became the first Epworth minister June 8, 1963. Later on June 30, worship services began in the brand new Brookhaven High School. The following October, the congregation began meeting at Valley Forge Elementary School. Finally, all of the phone calls, contacts, and planning reached a pinnacle on November 24, 1963, the day Epworth was officiallyorganized and constituted. In the beginning, membership was 130 people, but just 18 months later it jumped to 340.

The original church building at 5100 Karl Road was consecrated February 8, 1967. The building comprised a worship space and an education wing. In the mid 1990s, planning started for the addition of a new worship center, which was constructed and in use by the end of the century. As the 21st century began, the early visions of Epworth Church were now complete and ready to be fully in service to the Northland community through the Gospels of Jesus Christ.

As a community of faith, Epworth has always been a “church at the edge,” a willing partner in the struggles of Northland and the world. The year 2013 marked 50 years of loving God and loving others for the thousands of people who walked through Epworth’s doors and heeded the call of Jesus Christ: “follow me.”